Mother and Child Reunion
by Erin T. Aardvark
Summary: The Impossibles may have solved the mystery in their last adventure, but they overlooked one detail. What happens when that overlooked detail shows up after sixteen years? Rated T as a precaution for later chapters
1. Maria Manikatti

* * *

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: Another one of my "famous" follow up stories. This follows "Family Secrets," mostly because I didn't close up the issue about Fluey's mom. Just a fair warning, this one is going to touch on some issues later on in the story, so be warned ahead of time (nothing *too* graphic, but definitely nothing you'd see in the original cartoon, either)._

* * *

It had been a little over a month since the Impossibles had tangled with the notorious mob boss, Antonio Manikatti. That particular case left Fluey in somewhat of a state of shock. He had finally found out who his birth parents were. His mother was named Maria Manikatti, who was the daughter of Antonio Manikatti, and his father was named Jack Dawson, who was the son of Big D, the chief himself. Fluey was still reeling a bit when he found out his boss was his grandfather. And even though he found out, Fluey was more comfortable calling him either "Big D" or "Chief."

Coiley and Multi were a bit surprised to learn this as well, though they weren't sure if they were more shocked that their boss was Fluey's grandfather, or that their boss's secretary, Phyllis, was his daughter (and Fluey's aunt, though he never referred to her as "Aunt Phyllis"). And only part of the mystery had been solved. Fluey had found the identities of both parents, and he even found the whereabouts of his father. Unfortunately, Jack had been killed by Manikatti's mob right after Maria had gotten pregnant. And after Maria left Fluey on the doorstep of the children's home, she just disappeared. For all anyone knew, she was in the Bermuda Triangle along with Big Foot and Amelia Earhart.

But all that was about to change.

It was a typical morning. Phyllis was at her typewriter, working on some reports, when a woman walked into the office. She looked like she was in her early thirties, and had long black hair.

"My name's Mrs. Sheldon," she said. "I'm here to see the chief."

"Do you have an appointment?" Phyllis asked.

"No, but it's important," Mrs. Sheldon said. "And a bit personal. It has something to do with Antonio Manikatti."

"What exactly is this about? Antonio Manikatti is a pretty touchy subject with Big D."

"I'm only talking to your chief."

Phyllis sighed, and pushed a button on her intercom.

"Chief," she said. "There's a Mrs. Sheldon out here who would like to speak to you. She says it's about Manikatti, and she only wants to talk to you about it."

"Send her in," Big D said. Phyllis stood up, and led the woman into the chief's office. The minute she shut the door, the Impossibles walked into the office. Multi's puppy, Skittles, shot over to Phyllis, nearly knocking her off her feet.

"Easy, girl," Phyllis said.

"At least she's getting better about applying her brakes," Multi said.

"So what's going on in there?" Fluey asked, indicating the chief's office.

"Beats me," Phyllis shrugged. "Somebody named Mrs. Sheldon went in there to talk to the chief about Manikatti."

"Please, don't _ever_ mention that name around me again!" Fluey shouted.

"Yeah, I think we've all had about enough of him to last us a life time," Coiley commented.

"I'm curious, though," Fluey said. "I wonder what they're talking about in there?"

"Don't get any ideas, fella," Phyllis warned. "Just remember the old saying. Curiosity killed the cat."

Fluey took a couple of steps away from the door. He had a feeling his curiosity was going to drive him out of his mind.

In the office, Big D led Mrs. Sheldon to a chair, and then sat down behind his desk.

"Mrs. Sheldon," he said. "Very interesting choice of alias, I must say. Seriously, though, you're not fooling me one moment, Miss Manikatti. You've had an intimate relationship with my son, and your father and I have been at odds with each other for twenty years. I'd recognize you in a heartbeat."

"I'm aware of it," Mrs. Sheldon (or rather, Maria Manikatti) said. "Believe me, I'm aware of it. But it isn't an alias. My name really is Maria Sheldon now. I've been married for five years."

"I see. I'm not going to beat around the bush Miss Mani . . . . Mrs. Sheldon. You've been gone without so much as a trace for sixteen years. What brings you back now?"

"I read in the newspaper that my father was dead, thanks to your agency. I came back to town for the funeral. While I was in town, I debated with myself to come and see Jack and Little Tony."

Big D nodded. "Little Tony" was what Fluey's name would have been had Maria decided to keep him, instead of abandoning him. She had written a note to Jack, thinking he would go to the children's home and take charge. She wasn't aware he was dead.

"I figured Jack was still an agent," she continued. "And it wouldn't surprise me if Little Tony is an agent, too."

"He is," Big D nodded. "Only your 'Little Tony' isn't so little anymore. And I'm afraid you can't see Jackson. Your father had him murdered sixteen years ago."

"Oh." There was a bit of an awkward silence. Big D cleared his throat and stood up then.

"Wait here," he said. "I need to have a talk with . . . . Tony, as it were."

Big D left his office. He didn't have far to go to find the Impossibles. They were sitting on the couch in the office, tuning their guitars. When they weren't on tour or on assignments, they would sometimes hang out at the office.

"Fluid," Big D said. "I need to talk to you."

"What'd I do now?" Fluey asked, standing up.

"You didn't do anything," Big D said. "At least not that I'm aware of. Can you handle another shock?"

"Something tells me I'm gonna find out about this Mrs. Sheldon in there, aren't I?"

"Yes. Her name is Maria Sheldon. Maria Manikatti Sheldon."

Fluey's jaw just about made a dent in the floor, and his eyes nearly popped right out of their sockets.

"Who . . . . she . . . . you . . . . what . . . . how . . . ." he stammered.

"Chief, you're kidding!" Coiley shouted.

"I never kid," Big D replied.

"Did she tell you she was Maria Manikatti?" Multi asked. "She might be an impostor."

"It's really her," Big D said. "She and Jackson had a very intimate relationship. I'd know Maria Manikatti anywhere."

"If I may borrow something from Speedy Gonzales," Fluey said, sitting down on the couch. "Holy frijoles!"

"Nice of her to finally make an appearance," Phyllis grumbled.

"I know, I know," Big D said. "But she read about Manikatti in the papers, came to town for the funeral, and she figured she'd come by and see Jackson and 'Little Tony.' I had to tell her Jackson was dead."

"Chief, _please_ don't call me Tony!" Fluey shouted. "It's bad enough he was my grandfather, but I had to be named after him too! Sheesh!"

"I know, I know," Big D continued. "In anycase, I'm leaving this up to you, Fluid. If you would like to see your mother, then come into my office. If not, I'll tell her to leave."

"I'll go in and talk to her," Fluey said. "Oooh boy, am I ever gonna unload an earful on her!"

"Just control yourself," Multi warned. "I know you'd love the chance to give her more than a piece of your mind."

"Yeah, you're likely to take her head off in there," Coiley said.

Fluey didn't respond, and he followed Big D into the office. Maria saw them walk in, and stood up.

"This simply _can't_ be little Tony!" she shouted.

"Believe it, baby," Fluey muttered, cringing at being called "Tony."

"I just can't believe it," Maria continued. "When I last saw you, you were just a little bitty thing, and now . . . ."

"You can forget sugarcoating things," Fluey interjected. "I saw the letter you wrote to Dad. Leaving me on the doorstep of an orphanage without any identification, just because you couldn't handle it?!"

"Tony, I was only fifteen."

"Don't ever call me Tony! My name's Fluey now! It never was Tony, and it never will be Tony!"

"Tony, listen to me. It was a mistake. Everything that happened between your father and me was a mistake."

"Including me, right?!"

"To an extent, yes."

"Well that just figures."

"Tony, sweetie, I said I was only fifteen when you were born. I was young and naive. I didn't know what to do, and I didn't know where to go to for help. I was desperate. I was broke, and I couldn't handle it. I know it sounded like I didn't care, and maybe back then, I didn't, but I've regretted the decision ever since."

"So what took you so long to try and find me?"

"Fear of my father, mostly. He is . . . . _was_ . . . . a very intimidating person. I knew he would have a cow if he knew I was pregnant. And I couldn't come here to tell Mr. Dawson. He would have hit the roof, I'm sure!"

"At the time, yes," Big D admitted. "Trust me, Fluid, that letter was a big revelation to all of us."

"I guess," Fluey admitted. Then he turned to Maria. "But don't think that lets you off the hook."

"I know it doesn't," Maria said. Then she took out a pen and a piece of paper, and began scribbling. "Look, I'm going to be in town for a few days. If you feel like talking, just come by my hotel."

"Right," Fluey said, taking the piece of paper from his mother. Maria then left the office.

"Well?" Big D asked.

"Well what?" Fluey said, looking at his superior.

"Are you going to try to make amends with your mother while she's in town?"

"Are you kidding?! After what she put me through?! All I wanted to do was get some stuff off my chest, and now that I've done that, I am never planning in seeing that woman again!"


	2. Suspiscion

That evening, Multi and Coiley were over at the chief's house. Fluey had moved in with him and Phyllis. The boys were looking at some old high school yearbook photos.

"It's uncanny," Multi said. "But you look just like your dad, Fluey. Except I think his hair's shorter."

"And a lighter color," Phyllis said. "Jack's hair was dark blond. You definitely get your black hair from your mother."

"Hopefully, that's the only thing I got from her," Fluey grumbled.

"I don't know, she seemed pretty sincere about wanting to make amends, Fluid," Big D replied.

"I don't care," Fluey said. "I'd rather not see her again after what she did to me."

"I don't get why you're so bent out of shape about it," Coiley said. "I mean, you've pretty much forgiven your dad for this. Why not your mom?"

"Because my dad didn't know about me," Fluey said. "If he _had_ known and just left me there at the orphanage, then I'd still be upset with him."

"But would he have taken responsibility for you?" Multi asked. "That's the main question, I think."

"He probably would have," Big D replied.

"Okay, okay," Coiley said. "I still think maybe you should try to make up with your mother."

"Oh what would you know about it, Coiley?" Fluey asked, glaring at his team mate. "You had a mom all your life!"

"Hey, whoa, Fluey, I don't think . . . ." Multi started.

"And I thought you'd be on my side over this!" Fluey shouted at the redhead. "You know a little about what I'm going through! After all, your parents split up when you were four years old! And every time you get a chance to see her, she's always doing something 'more important' than spending time with you!"

"Fluey, would you calm down already?" Multi groaned.

"All right, all right," Big D said. "That's enough."

Fluey sighed, and went back to the yearbook.

The next day, the boys were driving around, not really doing much of anything.

"How long is your mom in town, anyway, Fluey?" Multi asked.

"Are you guys still trying to convince me I should make up with her or something?" Fluey asked.

"We're just curious," Coiley said. "I mean, just because someone's related to a mob boss doesn't automatically make them a bad person. Look at you."

"Very funny," Fluey said, shooting Coiley a Look.

"Come on, why don't you want to see your mom?" Multi asked. "Other than the fact you're still mad at her for abandoning you."

"I don't know," Fluey said. "Intuition, I guess. Something's telling me nothing good is going to come from seeing my mother."

"What about calling?" Multi asked.

"Yeah, she left a number, didn't she?" Coiley asked.

"No," Fluey said, pulling the piece of paper his mother gave him out. "She just wrote down the name of the hotel and the room number."

"Well, it's a start," Coiley said. "We can call the front desk, and they'll put us through to the room."

Fluey agreed to that, and the boys pulled over. Fluey got out of the car, and ducked into the phone booth. He looked up the hotel in the phone book, and dialed. After going through the front desk, Fluey managed to get his mother's room. Multi, Coiley, and Skittles waited in the Impossi-Mobile. Skittles seemed a bit tense.

"What's with Skittles?" Coiley asked.

"Puppy intuition, I guess," Multi said. "I think she gets this uneasy feeling around Fluey's mom."

"Yeah, Fluey said he was getting his own weird feeling. You know his intuition is almost never wrong."

Multi agreed. After about five minutes, Fluey came back to the car, and got in.

"Well?" Coiley asked.

"She says we need to talk this over face to face," Fluey said. "I told her why we couldn't discuss things on the phone, and she said we needed to get together and talk this over in person. Alone. She wanted me to come over to her hotel. And let me tell you something, guys, I do not like the sound of that at all."

"Neither does Skittles," Multi said, as Skittles began whimpering. "I don't like it, either."

"That makes it unanimous," Coiley said. "So what are you going to do?"

"I told her to meet me at your mom's diner at noon, Coiley," Fluey said. "That way, she won't suspect anything."

"You expecting something to happen?" Multi asked.

"I don't know," Fluey shrugged. "But my instinct is telling me something might be up. I don't want to take chances."

Multi and Coiley agreed, and the trio (or rather, quartet) drove to the diner. When they arrived, the boys staked out a booth, and waited.

"I hate to leave Skittles out in the car by herself," Multi said.

"You know my mom doesn't allow pets in here," Coiley said. "The health department could shut her down if they found out."

"Besides, Skittles can hold her own," Fluey said.

At exactly noon, a black Corvette drove into the parking lot. Coiley, Multi, and Fluey just stared at it. It was a rental, they could tell that by the license plates. When the door opened, out stepped Maria Manikatti (or was it Maria Sheldon?)

"It's her," Fluey said. "You guys better split."

"Right," Multi said, and he and Coiley moved to the counter.

Maria walked in, and looked around the diner. She spotted Fluey in the booth, walked over, and sat down.

"So what was wrong with talking at my hotel?" she asked.

"Personal reasons," Fluey said.

"But, Tony, it's so noisy in here," Maria said. "And there are just . . . . so many _people _around. There's no way we can get any privacy here."

"Tough luck. We either talk here, or we don't have this conversation at all."

"Fine."

"So start talking. What took you sixteen years?"

"Like I said the other day. I was young, I was naive, I was in love. Teenage girls tend to think their first serious relationship is true love. And they don't think straight, either. Jack and I didn't consider the consequences. My father would have wanted me to give up the baby, but I wanted to keep it."

"Yeah, then I came along and three days later, you dropped me on a doorstep."

"I know, sweetie, I know. And I want you to know I've regretted that decision. But I couldn't go home. My father would have literally killed me."

"And you couldn't try to locate me earlier because . . . . ."

"I just didn't think about it until I read the newspaper last month. Really, Tony, I'd like a chance to start over."

Fluey clicked his tongue against his teeth. He slowly began inching his way out of the booth. He couldn't explain it, but he wanted to get out of there, and fast.

"I have an idea," Maria said. "Why don't we go for a quick drive? Just you and me."

"I'd rather not, if it's all the same to you," Fluey said.

"But it'll just be a quick one. Come on, it'll give us a chance to get to know each other better."

"I think I know enough about you already!"

And with that, Fluey got to his feet and raced out of the diner as fast as he could. Multi and Coiley ran after him, and the three of them took off, converting to Impossi-Jet along the way. Maria tried to follow them, but the minute the boys converted to their jet, she lost sight of them.

"What was that about?" Coiley asked.

"I don't know, but I don't trust her," Fluey said. Skittles barked in agreement.

"She's trying to get me alone," Fluey continued. "But for the life of me, I can't figure out why."

"We'd better be on our toes," Multi said.

Fluey and Coiley agreed.

Late that night, Fluey was practically tearing Big D's bookshelves apart, trying to find out more on Maria, when both Big D and Phyllis caught him in the act.

"Fluid, it's nearly midnight," Big D said. "May I ask what in the world are you doing?"

"Sorry, chief," Fluey said. "I just wanted to see if you had anything here about Maria Manikatti. I'm not positive on it, but I think she might be up to something."

"What makes you say that?" Phyllis asked.

"I don't know," Fluey shrugged. "I called her hotel room to talk to her, but she said she wanted to talk about this in person. She was kind of reluctant to meet me at the diner in town, as well. I also remember Manikatti saying something about her being mentally unstable."

"What do you think, Dad?" Phyllis asked, turning to Big D.

"I think this deserves looking into," Big D said. "But not tonight. It's too late."

"Besides, it'll look suspicious," Phyllis said. "The night watchmen are trained not to let anyone, and I mean _any_one into the building after six PM. Not even the chief. You never know if it's the real thing or an impostor."

"I can dig that," Fluey said.

"Come on, let's go to bed," Phyllis said, stifling a yawn.

At around two in the morning, a figure in black crept across the lawn. It was obviously a woman. The black catsuit she wore showed off her figure quite nicely. She grabbed a ladder, leaned it against the house, and slowly climbed up to the second story window. She managed to get the window open, and slowly, she crawled into the empty bedroom. Then, she snuck down the hallway, and slowly opened a door to another room. Inside, she found Fluey, sound asleep. The woman in black began sneaking into the room, hoping she wouldn't wake him up. But as she came closer, Fluey stirred, and started to wake up. He looked over at this strange woman in his room. Before he could say anything, the woman clamped her hand over his mouth, and pulled him to his feet. Fluey struggled, and managed to grab the woman's black ski mask. He was able to pull himself away, and unmasking the woman as well.

And it turned out to be Maria Manikatti. Before Fluey could even react, Maria grabbed him, covered his mouth with her hand, and practically dragged him out of the room, and down the stairs.

"Don't make any noise," she warned him. "We wouldn't want to wake up your grandfather and your aunt. You and I are going on a little trip, whether you like it or not, Tony."


	3. New Home

Maria dragged Fluey over to her car, and shoved him into the front seat. Then, she closed the door, and went around to the other side, climbing in herself. Fluey tried to escape, but Maria grabbed his arm.

"Don't even think about it," she said. Then she took a roll of duct tape out of the glove compartment, ripped off a piece, and place it over Fluey's mouth. Then, she took the roll, unwound some of the tape, and used it to tie Fluey's wrist's behind his back. Fluey noticed the car's windows were tinted, so no one would be able to see inside of it.

"Now, let's get rolling," Maria said, buckling Fluey's seatbelt, and then her own. "We've got a long way to go."

Maria started the car, and pulled out. Fluey had to do a lot of fast thinking. How was he going to get out of this one?

Meanwhile, the phone in Big D's bedroom began ringing. The chief was none too thrilled at this. He glanced over at his clock, and grumbled. He usually got up at five, and didn't like to be disturbed in the middle of the night.

"Yes?" he asked, once he picked up the phone. Phyllis had also been awakened by the phone and she wandered into her father's room, and leaned against the doorway to keep from falling over.

"It's after two in the morning," she grumbled. "Who is it?"

"One of the neighbors," Big D said, holding his hand over the receiver for a moment. Then he went back to the phone. "Mrs. Donaldson, is there a reason you're calling me at two in the morning? Yes . . . . are you sure? Phyllis, check on Fluid."

Phyllis nodded, and left the room. Big D hung up the phone, and got up. He went to the stairway, and found the front door was opened. Phyllis ran out into the hall shortly afterward.

"He's not in his room," she said.

"And the front door is open," Big D said. He then went into another room, and found the window open, and a ladder below it.

"Looks like someone broke in," he said.

"And kidnapped Fluey," Phyllis said.

"I'm willing to bet it was Maria Manikatti. We'd better call the other two."

Phyllis nodded, and she and Big D ran down the stairs to the first floor, through the kitchen, and down another flight to get to the basement. They had a communications system set up there for emergencies, and this qualified as an emergency. They got everything ready, and first called Coiley's guitar. It began bleeping, waking him up.

"Ugh, it's too early," he grumbled, but got up anyway to take the "call."

"Chief, it's two in the morning, can't it wait until later?" he asked, once he pushed the button to activate the TV screen in his guitar.

"I'm afraid not," Big D said. "Someone broke into my house, and Fluid's missing. I speculate Maria Manikatti might be the culprit."

"Well, she'd been trying to get him alone all day," Coiley said. "It doesn't surprise me that she'd kidnap him."

"We'll call Multi, and you drive over and get him. Meet me and Phyllis at the office immediately."

"Right, chief!"

Coiley ended the transmission, put his guitar in the case, and raced out to the Impossi-Mobile. Meanwhile, Big D contacted Multi on his guitar. Multi wasn't too thrilled with being woken up, either.

"Chief, do you even know what time it is?" he asked.

"Yes, but it's an emergency," Big D said. "Coil should be coming by your place momentarily. Meet me and Phyllis at the office."

"What's the matter?"

"We aren't positive, but we speculate Fluid might have been kidnapped by Maria Manikatti."

"What?! I'll be right over!"

Multi practically threw his guitar in the case, picked up Skittles, and raced for the front door to wait for Coiley. He arrived not two minutes later, and the boys practically broke the sound barrier on their way to the SSHQ. Once they arrived, they raced upstairs to Big D's office.

"I want you boys to look into this right away," Big D said. "And be extremely careful."

"Right, we don't have access to our powers," Multi said.

"You really have _got_ to talk to the people in research and development, chief," Coiley said. "They've got to come up with something that'll let us change to our hero identities without all three of us being present."

"I'll take care of that," Phyllis said. "You guys get out there."

"Right!" both Multi and Coiley shouted, saluting. Skittles barked, and saluted, and the three of them went out to the Impossi-Mobile to track down Maria.

About five hours later, Maria drove into what Fluey considered the middle of nowhere, and stopped the car. She put it into park, and got out. She unlocked the passenger door, unbuckled Fluey's seatbelt, and pulled him out of the car.

"Let's go," she said, practically dragging him across the vacant lot, only it didn't turn out to be so vacant after all. There was another car across the lot. Maria pushed Fluey against it for a moment, and took the tape off his wrists. Then she yanked it off his mouth.

"Ow!" Fluey shouted. "Sheesh, watch it, will ya?!"

"Sorry," Maria said, opening the other car door. "Come on. Get in the car. We've got a long drive ahead of us."

"Forget it," Fluey said. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm going back to Megatropolis!"

Fluey was about to head back for the black Corvette, considering Maria had left the keys in there, but Maria grabbed his arm, and practically squeezed it.

"Ow! Let go!" Fluey shouted. "That hurts!"

"Tony, get in the car right now," Maria said.

"No! I'm not gonna do it! What makes you think I'm gonna do what you tell me to do?! Because you're my mother?! I'm not going _any_where with you!"

"Tony, get in the car right now!"

"And for the last time, stop calling me Tony!"

"Anthony Manikatti, if you don't get into this car this minute, you are going to be in big trouble!"

Fluey shook Maria off him, and started for the Corvette. Maria grabbed his arm again, and slapped him across the face as hard as she could with the back of her hand.

"I said get in the car!" she ordered, opening the door, and practically throwing Fluey into it. She slammed the door shut, and got in the other side. Then she started it up.

"Where are we going, anyway?" Fluey asked.

"Home," Maria said. "You're coming to live with me and my husband Jess. He can't wait to meet you."

"You've got to be kidding."

"No, I'm not kidding. I know I left you on a doorstep when you were a baby, sweetie, but things have changed. Jess and I want to start a family, and I told him about you and Jack . . . . and he wants to meet you, and he wants you to come live with us, and we'll be a real family."

"Oh brother."

Fluey found his mother was like Dr. Jekyll, and Ms. Hyde all of a sudden. Not two minutes ago, she had screamed at him, backhanded him across the face, and threw him into the car, and now she was sweet talking. He didn't like it one bit.

The drive was long and tedious. Maria seemed to be driving forever, and she wasn't stopping for anything. Not even a quick run through the McDonald's drive through. Fluey was in sheer agony. He was getting stiff from having to sit in that car for at least nine hours straight. There wasn't even any interesting scenery, either. Maria was driving along a practically deserted stretch of highway with no signs of life whatsoever. No street signs, no houses, no nothing.

"What's the matter, Tony?" Maria asked. "You bored?"

"There's the pot calling the kettle black," Fluey said, rolling his eyes.

"Well, don't worry, baby. We'll be home soon."

Fluey sighed. It was about all he could do. Finally, Maria pulled into what looked like a city of sorts. And a pretty run down one, at that! Fluey really didn't like the looks of this place. There were a bunch of people hanging hanging around the alleys. Graffiti was spray painted all over buildings. It made him completely nervous. Maria pulled up to an apartment building.

"Come on," she said, climbing out of the car. "We'll have to go up the back stairs."

Reluctantly, Fluey got out of the car, and followed Maria up several flights of steps, and down a hallway until she stopped at a door. She took a set of keys out of her pocket, unlocked the door, and went inside. Fluey looked around. He wasn't quite sure what to make of the situation. But he had an idea on how to get out of there. He spotted the phone on the table and ran for it, but Maria stopped him.

"Hold it!" she shouted. "Don't touch the phone."

"Why not?" Fluey asked.

"Because I said so."

"You call that a reason?"

"Yes. Now then, I have to get dinner started before Jess gets home, so you just sit on the couch and wait. And stay away from the windows."

Fluey sighed, shook his head, and sat down on the couch. He figured he'd do what Maria told him to do for awhile, until he could find a way to get out of this mess.


	4. Stepfather Knows Best

Ten minutes later, the front door opened. Fluey looked over and saw a tall man, at least six feet. He was wearing a white T-shirt, jeans, and a construction hat. He practically slammed the door shut, and threw his hat on the ground.

"Maria, dinner better be ready by the time I get in there!" he shouted.

"Yes, dear, dinner's ready," Maria said. "Come on, Tony."

"So you went and got the kid, huh?" the man asked.

"Yes, dear," Maria said. "Jess, this is my son, Tony. Tony, this is my husband, Jess Sheldon. Your stepfather."

"Yeah," Fluey said, looking up at Jess, who towered over him. There was something about him he didn't like, but he couldn't pinpoint it.

"Yeah?" Jess repeated. "That's all you've got to say to me?"

"Well . . . ." Fluey said, a little hesitantly. "Other than my name's not really Tony, but . . . ."

"Skip it," Jess said. "Maria, get your butt in the kitchen and get dinner on the table now! I'm starving!"

"Yes, dear," Maria said, and she walked into the kitchen, as Jess sat down at the table. Fluey followed. Dinner was pretty quiet. Neither Maria nor Jess were saying much of anything. Fluey was mostly keeping his mouth shut as well. He began thinking about a possible way to get out of this apartment, and was suddenly brought out of his thoughts when Jess smacked his hand against the table.

"You overcooked the steak again!" he shouted, jumping to his feet. "Don't you even know how to cook?! If it's not one thing, it's another! If you don't undercook it, then you overcook it!"

"Sorry, dear," Maria said. "I'll cook you another one if you like."

"Don't bother," Jess said. "You'll only screw it up. As always!"

Fluey just sat there, a little surprised at Jess's reaction to an overcooked steak. He thought it was a bit of an over reaction. He had been over to Multi's house when his older sister had been doing the cooking, and she was the world's worst cook. Eating her steaks was like eating shoe leather. He knew Multi's father hated overcooked steaks, but he never went off like that over it.

"Well, what are you staring at?" Jess asked, once he realized Fluey was staring at him.

"Uhh, umm . . . . uhhh . . . ." Fluey stammered, not quite sure what to say. Jess grabbed him by his shirt collar, and pulled him to his feet.

"I'm talking to you!" he yelled. "You answer me when I talk to you, you got that?!"

"Oh yeah, I got it all right," Fluey said.

"Not like you're gonna if you cross me!"

Jess then let go, practically throwing Fluey to the floor. Fluey groaned, and was ready to give this guy a taste of his left hook, but then, he thought better of it. Clearly, Jess was in a bad mood, and Fluey didn't want to antagonize him. He wasn't afraid of Jess, but he wasn't stupid, either.

"Now get to your room and stay there until I tell you!" Jess yelled. "And stay away from the windows!"

Fluey got up, and walked across the apartment, and into one of the bedrooms. Jess slammed the door behind him, and Fluey heard him lock it. Fluey looked around the room. It was pretty empty, save for an army cot and a small chest of drawers. On the other side of the room was a closet, and a window. Fluey was fully aware that both Maria and Jess warned him to stay away from the windows. He figured they didn't want anyone to know he was in there. If someone happened to see him in the window, there would be questions, especially if there were tenants in the building who knew everyone who lived in the apartments. And it was obvious why they didn't want him to use the phone. He might call either the police, or Big D. But Fluey wasn't going to worry about it. He quietly walked over to the window, and opened the curtains enough for him to take a look outside, but not enough for someone to see him, just in case. But before he could get a good look, he heard someone unlocking the door. Quickly, he moved away from the window, and sat down on the cot. After the way Jess reacted to an overcooked steak, Fluey wasn't about to take any chances being caught standing by the window after he was told to stay away from it. The door opened, and Maria walked inside, carrying a large shopping bag.

"Hi, sweetie," she said, pleasantly. "Settling in?"

"Yeah," Fluey said. "What's in the bag?"

"Oh just some things I bought while I was in Megatropolis," Maria said. "Mostly clothes for you. If they don't fit, I can always get you something else tomorrow. I have to get you some shoes, anyway. I hadn't planned on coming to get you in the middle of the night. I _had_ hoped you would have either come to my hotel, or agreed to go on that 'short drive' I was talking about in the diner, but you didn't give me much of a choice."

"I knew you were up to something. Why else would you have wanted to get me alone with you? You were planning to kidnap me all along, weren't you?"

"Darling, kidnap is such a strong word. I prefer to think of it as taking back what is rightfully mine."

"I'm not buying that one."

"Well, you'd better get used to it."

And that was all Maria said. She began taking clothes out of the bag, and putting them in the drawers. Once she was finished, she left the room, locking it behind her. Fluey saw this as his chance. He went to the window, opened the curtains, and looked outside. This was definitely not a safe neighborhood, Fluey could tell that, but he knew he'd have to risk it. He was about to open the window when he heard Maria and Jess arguing outside his door.

"I gave you money to buy him clothes already!" he heard Jess yell.

"Yes, I know you did," Maria said. "But I need to buy him some shoes."

"What for? We're not letting him out of this apartment! You've already spent enough of my money on that stupid kid of yours already! You're not getting any more to spend on him!"

"Jess . . . ."

"Shut it, Maria! You're not buying anything else for that kid! Besides, it'll be a good way to keep him in the apartment. You've got to be nuts to go outside around here without shoes. You know those druggies that hang out in the alleys just dump their needles in the street where they can get stepped on."

"But Jess, what if he . . . ."

"I told you to shut up!"

Fluey suddenly heard a loud crash, and something smashing to pieces. He bit his lower lip and backed away from the door.

"Nothing is going to happen!" he heard Jess yell. "So quit whining about it! And remember you've got a job to do. Keep the kid in the apartment and don't let him near the windows or use the phone. You got me?!"

"Yes, dear," Maria said.

"I don't want anyone to find out we have this kid here. If you want to be a family, that's fine with me, but he's gotta abide by _my_ rules, and so do you! You know what happens if you don't!"

"I know, Jess, I know."

"Good. Then fill him in on the rules tomorrow. See if you can do _that_ right! And clean up this mess!"

Fluey then heard some stomping, and then a door slam. Then, he sat down on the cot to think. He didn't know what in the world had just happened, except Jess either threw something or knocked over something. Whatever happened, something hit the floor and broke. Fluey also wondered about these "rules" Jess was talking about. And he didn't want to admit it, but he was starting to get scared. What would happen if he _didn't_ follow Jess's rules? What would he do if Fluey attempted to escape and he found out about it?

Meanwhile, Multi, Coiley, and Skittles were driving around in the Impossi-Mobile, looking for Fluey, but the trouble was they had no idea where Maria could have taken him.

"This is like looking for a needle in a haystack," Multi said.

"And I don't think Skittles sense of smell is helping us any," Coiley said. Skittles was out on the hood of the Impossi-Mobile (though neither Multi nor Coiley could figure out how she did that without flying off), and doing her best to track Fluey down, but it wasn't doing much good.

"Maybe we ought to convert to Impossi-Jet and search from the air," Coiley suggested. "We might be able to see more that way."

"Good idea," Multi said, and he converted the car to jet, and took off into the sky. Skittles ran back inside the jet. She only went out on the hood when it was in car mode.

"Looks like the middle of nowhere down there," Coiley commented.

"Hmm," Multi said in agreement. Suddenly, Skittles began barking, and she went into her pointer routine (_POING!_)

"Uh oh," Coiley said. "Skittles is doing her pointer thing. I guess she saw something down there. Better land, Multi."

"Right," Multi said, and he landed the Impossi-Jet in what appeared to be a vacant lot. Skittles immediately began sniffing around, and tracked something over to another part of the lot. Once again, she did her pointer thing.

_POING!_

"Coiley, look!" Multi shouted. "Looks like a black Corvette."

"Wasn't Fluey's mom driving a black Corvette when she came to my mom's diner?" Coiley asked.

"She was," Multi said, nodding. He walked over to the Corvette, and looked inside of it. He couldn't see much, because of the tinted windows, but the front door was unlocked. He opened it, and looked inside.

"Nothing here," he said. "If she and Fluey were here, they're gone now."

"You think maybe she switched cars?" Coiley asked. "She dated the chief's son, after all. She must've known he'd find out she kidnapped Fluey sooner or later."

"Right," Multi said. "And we knew she was driving a black Corvette."

"And if someone called the police and told them to be on the lookout for a black 'vette, she might have ditched the 'vette here, and switched to another car."

"That makes sense to me. Okay, Skittles. Sniff around and see if you can pick up a scent."

Skittles barked, saluted, and went to sniffing around. She smelled something familiar, and ran toward a stretch of highway, though it looked deserted. She barked, and did her pointer thing again.

"Good girl, Skittles!" Multi shouted, jumping into the Impossi-Jet. Coiley followed, as did Skittles.

"Let's hit it, Multi!" Coiley shouted. "We don't have a second to spare!"


	5. Escape Attempt

Fluey woke up the next morning when his door was unlocked. He leaned up, and saw Maria standing there.

"Time to get up," she said.

"What time is it, anyway?" Fluey asked.

"Six in the morning. You have five minutes."

"Five minutes for what?"

"Get up, get dressed, and get into the dining room for breakfast. Let's go."

Fluey groaned, and got up, reluctantly. He figured this was one of Jess's rules. Exactly five minutes later, Fluey walked into the dining room, and sat down at the table. Maria was in the kitchen, cooking.

"Morning," Jess said, coming into the dining room.

"Good morning," Maria said, cheerfully as she came into the dining room with a coffee pot. "Here's your coffee, dear."

"Now, Tony," Jess said. "Let's get a few ground rules straight here. I'm the boss here. Whatever I say goes. I don't tolerate any backtalk. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal," Fluey said.

"Good," Jess said.

Things got quiet all of a sudden. Maria picked up the coffee pot, and began pouring. She accidentally overfilled her cup a little, and some of the coffee spilled onto the table.

"Watch what you're doing, you idiot!" Jess shouted at her.

"Oops," Maria said. "I'm sorry, Jess, it's only a little bit. I'll clean it up right away."

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" Jess shouted, jumping to his feet. "That's all you ever say! Can't you do anything right, woman?!"

"I'll clean it up right away. You'll never know it's . . . ."

"Shut up, woman!"

Jess then knocked his cup over, causing a miniature tidal wave of coffee to splash across the table.

"Now look what you made me do!" he yelled, and he slapped Maria across the face, hard.

"Honey, please don't get so emotional," Maria said, fighting back tears. Without so much as a word, Jess hit her again, this time with his fist. Maria let out a scream, and she began crying.

"Don't tell me what to do!" Jess yelled, smacking her again. "Now pull yourself together and clean up this mess!"

Maria sniffled, and began cleaning things up. Fluey was practically in a state of shock. He just sat there, staring. He didn't get his wits back until Jess grabbed his arm, pulled him to his feet, and practically dragged him back to the bedroom.

"Stay there!" he commanded. "And don't go near that window, do you hear me?!"

Fluey tried to respond, but nothing was coming out of his mouth. He was still a bit shell shocked at what just happened. However, Jess didn't seem to notice this, and gave Fluey a slap across the face as well.

"I said do you hear me!" he yelled. "I told you yesterday, when I ask you a question, you answer! Do you understand?!"

Unable to answer verbally, at least for the moment, Fluey nodded, but that wasn't going to satisfy his stepfather. Jess grabbed him by the shoulders, and practically flung him against the wall. Fluey crashed into it, and groaned.

"Do you understand me?!" Jess shouted again.

"Yes," Fluey managed to say, knowing if he didn't give a verbal response, Jess would only hit him again.

Finally satisfied, Jess stormed out of the room, slamming the door and locking it behind him. Fluey pulled himself up, staggered to the army cot, and sat down. He heard Jess stomping the apartment, and then slamming the front door behind him.

"Sheesh!" he shouted. "How in the world can she put up with _that_?! I'd better find a way out of here or else I'm gonna end up as a statistic!"

Fluey went over to the window, and opened the curtains. The fire escape was right outside the window. That would work to Fluey's advantage. He opened the window, and was met with a screen. He tried to open it, like he did the window, but it wouldn't budge. He began pushing on it, trying to loosen it, but it was stuck.

"Great," he groaned. "Just great."

Fluey began thinking about how he was going to get out now. No way he could attempt breaking down the door and making a run for it. Maria would hear him, and see him. The window was his only option.

"They've got to come up with something that'll let us change into our superhero identities when we're separated," he said. "Then I'd be able to just go through this screen no problem."

Fluey continued looking at the screen, until he noticed a small tear in it.

"Ah ha!" he shouted. "There's my way out!"

Slowly, Fluey stuck his fingers into the screen, in order to make the tear bigger so he could get out. Once he tore the screen, he climbed out onto the fire escape, and ran down to the street. Then he began running.

"I'd better find the local police station," he said. "That might be the safest place to go once these two find out I flew the coop!"

Fluey hoped he'd be able to find the police station. This neighborhood wasn't very safe, and he remembered what Jess had said about drug users dropping needles in the streets. Plus there was the possibility of broken glass as well. But he'd just have to risk it.

Meanwhile, Multi, Coiley, and Skittles were driving around. They had converted back to Impossi-Mobile, due to the fact Skittles wouldn't be able to track anything in the air. Skittles was leaning on the car hood, sniffing around. She looked up when she noticed the boys were about to enter a city.

"YIPE!" she yipped, and dashed back into the car, slamming right into Multi, and nearly knocking the wind right out of him.

"Ooof!" Multi groaned, as he was pushed back into the seat thanks to Skittles. Luckily, he was able to slam on the brakes before he lost control of the car.

"What's wrong?" Coiley asked.

"I don't think Skittles likes the look of the area up ahead," Multi said.

"I agree with her," Coiley said. "But it wouldn't surprise me if Maria Manikatti took Fluey here."

"She did, didn't she, Skittles?" Multi asked. Skittles just whimpered and nodded. Multi sighed, and started up the car. They didn't get very far when they suddenly heard sirens blaring.

"Uh oh," Multi said.

"You'd better pull over," Coiley said. "Boy, how humiliating, getting pulled over for speeding."

Multi pulled the car over, and the police car behind them pulled over as well. Two officers got out of the car, and approached the boys.

"What seems to be the trouble, officer?" Multi asked. "I didn't we were speeding."

"You weren't," one of the officers said. "This is a nice car you boys have here."

"Thanks," Coiley said.

"I suggest you two turn it around and go back where you came from," the other officer said. "You two are setting yourselves up driving a car like this into town."

"That dangerous, huh?" Coiley asked.

"Oh yeah," the first cop said.

"Well, thanks for the warning, officer," Multi said. "But we can handle any trouble that comes our way."

"Suit yourselves," the cop said, shrugging. "Oh, by the way. If you do decide to get out of your car, make sure your pooch is on a leash."

"Will do," Coiley said. And with that, Multi drove off.

Meanwhile, Fluey was wandering the city streets, trying to find the police station. Being in law enforcement, Fluey had seen some pretty seedy neighborhoods, but this one took the cake. There was graffiti everywhere, and some pretty creepy looking characters hanging out on the street corners. There were homeless people, talking incoherently.

"Geesh, I'd better find the police station soon," he said. "This place gives me the creeps, and it usually takes a lot to give me the creeps!"

Fluey continued walking. It was about all he could do. As he was walking, he spotted something in the distance. He wasn't positive, but it looked like the Impossi-Mobile. He began running towards it, and sure enough, it _was_ the Impossi-Mobile.

"Hey, Multi! Coiley!" he shouted. "Hey, fellas! Over here!"

Skittles looked toward Fluey, and then began barking. Coiley glanced in the direction of Skittles's barking.

"Multi, stop the car!" he shouted. "There's Fluey over there!"

Multi stopped the car, and was about to turn it around, just as Fluey was about to run for it. But before anything could happen, someone grabbed Fluey from behind, clamped their hand over his mouth, and pulled him into an alley.

"Let's get moving, Multi!" Coiley shouted.

"Right!" Multi said, starting the car, and then took off down the street.

"Rally ho!" they cried. Unfortunately, the alley was too narrow for the Impossi-Mobile. Multi clipped Skittles's leash to her collar, and he, Skittles, and Coiley practically jumped out of the car, and raced down the alley.

"We'd better hurry before we lose them!" Coiley shouted.

"I think it's a little late," Multi said, when they reached the end of the alley, which happened to be a dead end.

"Now what?" Coiley asked. Suddenly, Skittles began barking, and she did her pointer thing.

_POING!_

"This way!" Multi shouted, and he and Coiley ran off in the direction Unfortunately, the boys had lost the trail.

"Rats," Coiley said, snapping his fingers.

"We'd better get back to the Impossi-Mobile," Multi said. "Before someone puts it up on blocks. Skittles will be able to pick up the trail."

Coiley agreed, and he, Multi, and Skittles ran back to the Impossi-Mobile.

While Coiley and Multi were on the search, Fluey was being taken back to the Sheldons' apartment. Somehow or another, Jess had caught him.

"You sneaky little so and so," Jess growled, as he drove to the apartment.

"How'd you find out?" Fluey asked.

"Your stupid mother went to check on you, and she called me when she found the hole in the window screen."

"You didn't actually _think_ you'd be able to keep me locked up, did you? I'm sure she's told you about the SSHQ."

Jess didn't answer. He just pulled his car into a parking space in front of the apartment building, and practically dragged Fluey up the stairs and into the apartment.

"MARIA!" he screamed the minute he got inside. "GET OUT HERE!"

"Did you find him?" Maria asked.

"I told you to make sure he didn't get out!" he yelled. "What part of that don't you understand?!"

"Honey, it wasn't my fault," Maria said. "I told him not to go near the window."

"Excuses, excuses!"

Fluey glanced at the front door, and then back at Jess and Maria. Neither of them were paying attention, so he made a beeline for it. Unfortunately, Jess grabbed him before he could reach it.

"Going somewhere, Tony?" he asked.

"Actually, I was just leaving," Fluey said.

"Oh no you don't!"

Fluey managed to wrench his arm away from Jess, but Jess grabbed him again. Fluey struggled, and managed to hit Jess in the face. Jess was a bit startled, and he let go. Fluey ran for the door once again, but Jess grabbed his shoulders, and pulled him over. Fluey tried to get away, but Jess threw him into the wall. Fluey hit it pretty hard, banging the back of his head against it. He wasn't knocked out, but he _was_ dazed, too dazed to fight back. Jess grabbed his shirt collar, pulled him to his feet, and dragged him back into his room. He practically threw the teenager onto the army cot, and then left the room for a minute or so.

"Now to make sure you don't try to run off again," he said, returning to the room a few moments later, with some rope and a roll of duct tape. Fluey tried to make a run for it, but Jess grabbed him, and punched him right in the face, blackening his eye. Fluey hit the floor, and groaned. Jess grabbed him by his shirt collar again, threw him onto the cot, and began to tie him to it, as tightly, as he possibly could. Then, he ripped a piece of duct tape off the roll, and pressed it firmly over Fluey's mouth.

"Let's see you get out of _that_, Houdini," Jess said. He smirked, and left the room, locking the door behind him.

Fluey immediately started struggling, but he could barely move. He began thinking over his position when he heard Jess yelling.

"You're even more stupid that I thought you were!" he yelled. "Every time I give you a simple thing to do . . . . just _one_ simple little thing . . . . . you go and screw it up!"

"Honey, please don't be so loud," Maria said.

"Shut up! Don't tell me what to do!"

Fluey then heard an all too familiar sound. It was the sound of a fist hitting a face. And hard. He heard Maria scream, and then she began crying hysterically.

"Knock it off!" Jess yelled. "Stop crying, or I'm gonna give you something to cry about!"

Fluey then heard a long string of yelling, screaming, hitting, and swearing. He cringed every time he heard Jess hit Maria. He didn't know what in the world he was going to do. He didn't want to admit it, but he was starting to feel a little sorry for Maria. And yet, another part of him was telling him that Jess was her problem.

_She's getting what she deserves. After all, she just dumped you at an orphanage when you were three days old. It took her sixteen years to come and find you, and then she goes and kidnaps you. And she lets this creep smack you around, as well._

But his conscience had other ideas.

_You can't just lie there and let this jerk beat up on her. Even if she did drag you to her apartment against your will, you just can't let him get away with this._

Finally, the yelling stopped. Fluey heard Jess stomp across the apartment, and slam a door. He could still hear Maria crying. Then he heaved a sigh. He didn't know what to do, and he could only hope Coiley and Multi would be able to track him down, and soon.


	6. Back To Megatropolis

Multi and Coiley drove the Impossi-Mobile to the apartment complex. Skittles sniffed around, and did her pointer routine.

_POING!_

"Up there, Skittles?" Multi asked, looking in the direction Skittles was pointing. Skittles barked in agreement.

"Let's check this out," Coiley said. "We can climb up the fire escape."

"Right," Multi said, and he, Coiley, and Skittles got out of the car, and went up the fire escape, slowly. Skittles stopped at one of the windows, and went into her pointer thing again.

"In here?" Coiley asked. Skittles barked and nodded. Multi tried to open the window, but it was locked from the inside.

"Now what?" Coiley asked.

"Well, unfortunately, we won't be able to sneak inside without drawing attention," Multi said. "As much as I hate to say it, we're going to have to break the window to get in."

Skittles barked, and she ran down the fire escape, across the street, and up the fire escape of another building. Multi and Coiley stood back. They knew exactly what she was going to do. Her feet began spinning wildly, and she blasted off. She zoomed right through the window.

_CRASH!_

Multi then reached his hand into the window (carefully, mind you), unlocked it, and then opened it. He and Coiley climbed inside. They found Skittles gnawing at the ropes that held Fluey to the cot. They ran over, and started to untie him.

"You okay, Fluey?" Coiley asked, slowly peeling the tape off Fluey's mouth.

"Yeah," Fluey said. "Yeah, I'm okay. Aside from this shiner, but other than that, fine."

"Where'd you get that black eye, anyway?" Coiley asked.

"My stepfather," Fluey groaned. "His left hook's worse than mine! Believe me, fellas, he is one tough customer. We've got to get my mom and split."

"Why? What's the matter?" Multi asked.

"We've got to get her out of her or else my stepfather's likely to kill her!" Fluey shouted. "He's a _very_ violent person! I've seen it, and I've heard it. He hits her! And I'm not talking about those smacks in the shoulder I've seen your sister give her boyfriend and vice versa, Multi!"

"You're kidding," Multi said.

"Multi, would I kid about something this serious?" Fluey asked. "He's knocked me around a few times, but I'm not thinking about what he's done to me. He's clobbered my mom ten times worse than he's clobbered me."

"I thought you didn't like your mother," Coiley said.

"I don't," Fluey said. "But we can't let her stay here and let this creep beat the tar out of her! She doesn't even _try_ to fight back!"

"He's got a point," Multi said. "She's probably afraid to report him, too. My stepmother had a friend who was in the same situation. Unfortunately, it didn't end well for her."

"Okay, Fluey, you're in charge here," Coiley said. "What do we do first?"

"The door's locked from the outside," Fluey said. "Once we change, I can slip under the door, talk to my mom, get the key to this room, and then the five of us will head for the police station."

"What about your stepfather?" Coiley asked.

"I think I can handle him once we do the quick change bit," Fluey said. "If I run into trouble, you guys can manage to break down the door, right?"

"Right," Coiley nodded. "Okay, then, let's hit it!"

And so, in a flash, the singing Impossibles changed into the superhero Impossibles, and Skittles transformed into her identity as Impossi-Pup. Fluey quickly converted to liquid, and effortlessly slipped out of the locked room from under the door. Then he morphed back into solid, and went into the kitchen. Maria was washing the dishes.

"Hey, Mom," Fluey said. "We gotta talk."

Maria sighed, ready to yell at him, and wondering how he got out in the first place. She turned around and was so startled, she dropped a plate. Fluey converted to liquid, shot forward, and caught it before it could hit the ground. No telling what Jess would do if he heard it break! Maria was even more stunned when she saw him do that!

"Tony?!" she gasped.

"Yeah," Fluey said.

"Anthony Manikatti! What are you . . . . how did you . . . . what . . . . it's . . . . it's impossible!"

"You hit the nail on the head with that one, Mom. I'll explain later. Right now, you and I have to get out of here. My friends are here, and we'll take you to Megatropolis and Big D, and you can file a report on this creep you call a husband."

"No. No way, no how. I am _not_ going to report this. Jess would kill me if I do!"

"Mom, he'll kill you if you don't! And he'll likely kill me, too, if we don't get out of here."

"But Tony . . . . if I go to Big D, he'll know I kidnapped you!"

"Mom, he already _knows_ you kidnapped me! He sent my friends to look for us. Listen to me. We've got to get out of here!"

"I can't. Besides, it's my own fault for making Jess angry."

"Look, Mom. You need help. Neither of us are safe here. We _have_ to leave!"

"Jess has warned me a million times if I ever left, he'd find me and kill me."

"Trust me, Mom. Big D will protect you from him. He probably won't let you off the hook for kidnapping, but at least he'll go easy on you once I explain the situation with you and that monster you married! Let's go through the window in my room. We've got to get out of here before . . . . ."

"Before what?!" someone yelled. Fluty turned around, and saw Jess standing there, glaring.

"Jess!" Maria shouted.

"You weren't thinking of leaving, were you?" Jess asked.

"No, of course not," Maria said, nervously.

"Liar!" Jess yelled, punching Maria in the face. He blackened her eye in the process, and knocked her to the floor. Jess left her there for a moment, and turned to Fluey.

"Well, twerp, I have to admire your spirit," he said. "I don't know how in the world you could've gotten loose this time around . . . . when I tie someone up, they stay tied up!"

"Not me, tall, dark, and gruesome!" Fluey shouted. "You can't keep _me_ contained!"

"We'll just see about that!"

Jess was about to make a grab for Fluey, but the dark-haired teen quickly converted to liquid, and flew toward Jess, punching him in the stomach as hard as he could, knocking the wind out of him. The force of the punch sent Jess flying into the wall, head first, knocking him out. Then, Fluey turned back into solid, grabbed Maria's hand, and started running.

"Let's split!" he shouted. "Before he comes to!"

Maria took her key out of her pocket, and unlocked the door. Then, she and Fluey ran inside and went to the window.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go!" Fluey shouted. "Who knows how long he's gonna be out cold?"

Coiley bounced out of the window first, followed by Multi, then Skittles, then Fluey and Maria. The five of them raced down the fire escape, jumped into the Impossi-Mobile.

"Convert to Impossi-Jet, Multi," Fluey said. "That way, we won't leave any tire tracks, and he'll have a harder time following us."

"Gotcha," Multi said, and he converted to Impossi-Jet and took off.

"How long do you think it'll take us to get back to Megatropolis?" Coiley asked.

"I hope not the nine hours it took us to get up here!" Fluey shouted.

"It shouldn't," Multi said. "Not by jet, anyway."

"But what if Jess happens to find us?" Maria asked.

"We've got super powers, Mom," Fluey said. "Don't worry, we can handle it."

A few hours later, Multi landed the Impossi-Jet on the landing pad of the SSHQ. Then he converted to Impossi-Mobile, and drove the car into the garage.

"Let's go see Big D," Coiley said. "He wanted to know when we got back."

"Right," Fluey said.

"Are you sure he won't lock me up and throw away the key?" Maria asked.

"He shouldn't," Fluey said. "Though I know I would. Keep in mind, Mother, I'm only doing this because nobody deserves to get beaten up by their spouse. I'm still mad at you, and I'm hoping the chief won't let you off the hook for kidnapping!"

Multi and Coiley groaned, and the group took the elevator to the top floor of the building. Phyllis was sitting at her desk, typing, when she heard them walk in. Immediately, she jumped to her feet, and ran over.

"Fluey, thank goodness!" she shouted. "Are you all right? What in the world happened to your eye?! Did she . . . ."

"No, she didn't," Fluey said. "I'm okay, Phyllis, the only thing that's wrong with me is the shiner, but my mom wasn't the one who socked me. It was my stepfather, Jess Sheldon. His left hook's worse than mine."

"So where is this Jess Sheldon?" Phyllis asked. "I'd like to give him more than a piece of my mind! This is child abuse!"

"I know," Fluey said, cringing a little at being referred to as a child. "But I have to bring this up with the chief. He's done a lot worse than child abuse."

"Such as?"

"Check out my mom's shiner. He gave it to her. And he verbally abuses her _and_ physically abuses her. I saw him hit her twice, and I heard a lot of hitting out there as well. He only hit me twice. Once was just a slap across the face, and the other resulted in the black eye. We gotta tell Big D."

"I'd say so."

Phyllis walked over to the desk, and pushed the button on her intercom.

"Chief," she said. "The Impossibles are back. All three of them. And they have Maria Manikatti with them."

"Sheldon," Maria corrected. "Maria Sheldon."

"Whatever," Phyllis muttered under her breath.

"Send them in," Big D said over the intercom. The group walked into the office and closed the door.

"I take it you've taken Mrs. Sheldon into custody?" he asked.

"Well, not exactly, boss," Fluey said.

"What do you mean not exactly?" Big D asked.

"Well . . . ." Fluey said, not exactly sure how to put it. "The thing is . . . . uhh, how do we go about reporting a domestic violence case?"

"What?!" Big D shouted.

"Before you fly off the handle, chief, let me explain," Fluey said. "All this creep only hit me twice, but apparently, he's been smacking my mom around for awhile."

"Five years," Maria admitted.

"Five years," Big D repeated. "You let this man abuse you for five years, and you never once thought about reporting it, or tried to leave?"

"He said he'd kill me if I did," Maria said. "And I'm afraid he might come after us."

"I wouldn't put it past him, chief," Fluey said. "This guy is even less sane than my mom!"

"I'll look into this and take the necessary actions," Big D said. "Fluid, I'm going to arrange for you and your mother to stay in a hotel for the time being. I'm sure, Mrs. Sheldon, you've told your husband about Jackson?"

"I did," Maria nodded.

"And he recognized me right away, chief," Fluey said.

"Right," Big D said. "It's too risky to have you stay at the house."

Fluey agreed. An hour later, he and Maria were sitting in a hotel room, not doing much of anything. Coiley and Multi were there as well. The three of them decided to stay in their superhero identities for awhile, just in case.

"Are you guys sure Jess won't show up?" Maria asked.

"To be perfectly honest, no," Multi said. "But I wouldn't worry too much about it."

"Yeah, Mom," Fluey said. "With the three of us on the job, we'll have this taken care of."

"Well, Tony, I hope you're right," Maria sighed.

"You're never gonna stop calling me that, are you?"

"I can't help it, it's what I'm used to."

"We'd better go," Coiley said. "We've got to make our rounds. Chief's orders."

"Yeah, we're supposed to be on the lookout for this guy," Multi said. "Thanks for the photo, Mrs. Sheldon. Now we know what to look for."

"See you later, fellas," Fluey said, as Coiley and Multi left. Once they were gone, Fluey stretched, and made himself comfortable on one of the beds.

"We might as well try and get some sleep," he said. "It's been a long couple of days."

"Hmm," Maria said. "How can you think of sleeping at a time like this, Tony?"

"Easy. I'm wiped."

"But aren't you even the least bit concerned about what your stepfather will do if he finds us?"

"Maybe if I didn't have my powers, like when I was at your apartment, but now I have them, and I'll be able to use them to my advantage."

"I wish I had your confidence, Tony, I really do."

Maria reached over and turned off the light. Then she closed her eyes, and sighed.

"Tony?" she asked.

"Yeah?" Fluey said.

"I know you're angry with me, and you had every opportunity to just leave me at my apartment and make an escape by yourself once your friends showed up. Why didn't you?"

"My ethics. It's also part of my job description. There's this unwritten rule that heros have to help people who need it, and believe me, you _really_ need it. In more was than one!"

"Very funny."

Things were quiet. Fluey then leaned up, and turned the light back on.

"While we're on the subject of questioning why, Mom," he said, "I've got one for you. Why'd you kidnap me in the first place?"

"I told you already," Maria said. "I wanted us to be a family. A real, normal, functional family."

"Mom, if you expect me to believe that, I got a bridge in Frisco I can sell ya cheap. Come on, out with it. Why'd you do it?"

"Well . . . . I really _did_ want to start a family. I thought maybe if we had a kid, Jess wouldn't be such a bully, since we'd have to work together to raise a kid. But he didn't want a baby, and I had remembered about you . . . . . I really _was_ in town for my father's funeral, you know. I figured Jack took responsibility and I figured I'd find out where you were, and take you back with me."

"I have news for you, Mom. It didn't work."

"I know, I know."

Fluey leaned over and turned the light back off, and he and Maria tried to get some sleep, but it wasn't easy. Maria was still a nervous wreck, and something was telling Fluey they weren't quite finished with Jess Sheldon.


	7. Snapped

Around midnight, both Fluey and Maria were awakened by someone banging on the door. It was far too loud to be either Multi or Coiley. Fluey got up, and looked through the peephole. Jess Sheldon was standing outside, pounding on the door as hard as he could.

"Uh oh!" Fluey shouted. "He found us!"

"How did he find us so fast?" Maria asked.

"Beats me. Give me the phone, Mom. And whatever you do, _don't_ open that door!"

Maria handed Fluey the phone, and he immediately dialed Big D. He would have called Coiley or Multi, but he didn't have any sort of communication device on him at the time that would allow him to do so.

_Note to self,_ he thought as he finished dialing. _Talk to Reggie about this lack of communication device from the chief._

"Hello?" Phyllis asked.

"Phyllis, it's me," Fluey said. "You're not gonna believe this, but Sheldon found us already."

"How'd he manage to do that?"

"I don't know, he just did! You'd better call Coiley and Multi. I'd do it myself, but I can't."

"Okay. I'll get on it right away."

Fluey hung up, and turned toward the door. Maria was looking at it, nervously. Jess was still banging on it.

"I know you two are in there!" he yelled. "Open up!"

"What do we do?" Maria asked.

"Nothing," Fluey said. "At least not yet. Just don't say a word."

"If you two morons don't let me in, I'll break down the door!" Jess yelled, as he continued to pound.

"He's likely to do it," Maria said. "If he hits it hard enough."

"I've got an idea," Fluey said. "Open the door and let him in."

"Are you crazy?!"

"Trust me, Mom, I know what I'm doing."

And with that, Fluey converted to liquid, and spread himself across the floor. Maria sighed, and opened the door.

"It's about time!" Jess shouted, storming into the room. "What took you so long to . . . . YEAAAUUUGGH!"

The minute Jess walked into the room, he stepped right into Fluey in his liquidized form, slipped, and landed flat on his back.

"Have a nice trip, Jess?" Fluey asked, morphing himself back to solid.

"You little . . . ." Jess grumbled, and he started to get up. "I oughta tear you limb from limb! I'll squash you like a bug!"

"Be my guest," Fluey said. Jess was about ready to strangle this kid, but Fluey quickly converted to liquid, and shot out of sight. Jess was a little confused.

"What the heck . . . . ." he started. "That's impossible!"

"You ain't just whistling Dixie, fella!" Fluey shouted, as he blasted forward and gave Jess a good, hard punch in the nose.

"Why you . . . ." Jess started, and he made another grab for Fluey, but he just converted again, and dodged.

"You're all washed up, Sheldon!" he shouted.

"You . . . . you . . . . you post-nasal drip!" Jess yelled. "Wait'll I get my hands on you!"

"Come and get me!" Fluey taunted. He converted to liquid again, just as Jess lunged for him. He couldn't keep this up. This was what Fluey was counting on.

"What's the matter, Pops?" Fluey asked. "Am I too fast for you?"

Jess growled, and dove for him. Fluey converted once more, and shot himself straight upwards. Jess ended up hitting the wall head first.

"Conductor, could you let me off at fifth and main?" he asked, dazed completely. Fluey started laughing.

"I don't think he can take much more of this," he said.

"That's what I'm afraid of," Maria said. "Really, Tony, you shouldn't antagonize him like this. He's a very violent person!"

"I know what I'm doing, Mom," Fluey said. "Trust me. I'm just trying to wear him out a little."

Jess got up. Fluey was ready for him. He shot forward, and socked him in the stomach.

"Had enough?" he asked. "I can keep this up all night if I have to, fella. And you just _wait_ until my pals show up. You think you've had it now, just you wait! It might be easier on ya if ya give up here and now."

"All right, all right," Jess said. "I give up."

"And there ya have it, Mom," Fluey said. "I told you I knew what I was doing."

"You worm!" Jess yelled, hitting Fluey in the back of the head with the handle of a gun. Fluey hadn't seen it coming, and therefore, didn't have the time to go into a conversion. The teenager fell to the floor.

"Wipe out," he mumbled, dazedly.

"There, see, you're not so tough," Jess said. He kneeled next to Fluey, punched him in the jaw, grabbed his goggles, yanked them off, and threw them across the room.

"What the heck are you doing?" Fluey asked, giving him a weird look.

"We've gotta lose those goggles, kid," Jess said, and he held up his gun, aiming it directly between Fluey's eyes. "They could stop the bullet, you know. Now, you don't have to be afraid of anything, sonny. I'm a pro at this. It'll all be over quickly, and you won't even feel a thing."

Fluey was too nervous to move. Even if he tried to convert to liquid, there was no guarantee Jess wouldn't fire. He could still be injured if he tried to do anything. He was stuck.

"Jess, no!" Maria yelled, suddenly jumping in front of Fluey just as Jess pulled the trigger. The bullet hit her instead of Fluey, and she collapsed to the floor.

"Mom!" Fluey yelled, getting up, and kneeling next to Maria. "Mom, can you hear me?! Mom, please! Please, say something!"

Maria didn't respond. And Fluey knew she never was going to respond. The shot Jess fired had killed her instantly. Fluey just sat there, somewhat in a state of shock.

"Stupid woman," he heard Jess mumble. "Serves her right."

"You can't be serious," Fluey said, standing up, and glaring at his stepfather. "How can you even _say_ that?!"

"That bullet was meant for you, you know. If she hadn't been so stupid to get in front of you . . . ."

"I can't believe you. You've been married to her for five years, you've probably abused her for that long, and now, you've gone and _killed_ her . . . . and you _say_ it's her fault?!"

"She was stupid enough to get in the path of a gun, then she deserves it!"

Fluey glared once more. He grinded his teeth and clenched his fists. Something inside him snapped, and he lunged, tackling Jess to the ground. Jess was so surprised, he dropped his gun. Before he knew what was happening, Fluey wrapped his fingers around his neck, and began slamming his head against the floor, one bang right after another, squeezing his stepfathers neck with every blow. He also threw a couple of punches to Jess's face, but mainly, he was smashing his head on the floor. He didn't even stop when Skittles raced into the room, barking her head off. Multi and Coiley quickly ran into the room, and saw Fluey with his hands around his stepfather's neck, and practically bashing his head in.

"Fluey!" Multi yelled, as he grabbed Fluey by the arms.

"Let go!" Fluey yelled, trying to shake off his friend. "Let me at him!"

"Fluey, calm down a little!" Multi shouted. "You're likely to kill him if you keep that up!"

"Multi, let go of me!" Fluey protested. "I'll rip him to shreds! I'm not gonna let him get away with it!"

"Fluey, what's the matter with you?" Multi asked. "This isn't like you at all."

"I don't care!" Fluey yelled. "I'll kill him! I'll kill him with my bare hands!"

"Too late," Coiley said, looking up at his teammates. "You've already done that, Fluey."

Fluey stopped squirming suddenly, and just looked at Coiley.

"You mean . . . ." Fluey started. "I actually . . . . I didn't . . . . I couldn't have . . . . I . . . . I . . . ."

Fluey felt dizzy all of a sudden. The room began spinning.

"Oh man," he moaned. "I can't believe it. I actually can't believe that I just . . . ."

Before he could finish his sentence, Fluey's eyes rolled back in their sockets, and he collapsed in a dead faint. Multi caught him before he could hit the floor.

"We'd better call the chief," he said. "We've got ourselves a _big_ problem here!"


	8. Confrontation

Fluey didn't come to his senses until around three in the afternoon. He found himself in the infirmary of the SSHQ. Multi, Coiley, and Skittles were there, as well as Phyllis, and the SSHQ's chief medical officer, Dr. Isaac Phelps.

"Oooh, my aching head," Fluey groaned.

"I'll bet," Coiley commented.

"I can't believe I actually strangled that guy to death!" Fluey shouted. "Does the chief know about it?"

"Yes," Phyllis said.

"I am _so_ dead!" Fluey shouted. "The chief'll kill me for this!"

"Not necessarily," Dr. Phelps said.

"What do you mean?" Fluey asked. "You know we have to follow the SSHQ rules, and you _know _we're not supposed to intentionally _kill_ somebody!"

"We know, Fluey, we know," Phyllis said. "But you didn't intentionally kill him. You _un_intentionally killed him. And quite frankly, I would have done the same thing! Right after I called Coiley and Multi, I did a little research on this Jess Sheldon character. He'd been married ten times in the past twenty years."

"That's not so surprising," Fluey shrugged. "The man obviously had problems with people!"

"Right," Phyllis said. "And I also found out that he had beaten all of his wives to death."

"Somehow, I don't find that surprising, either," Fluey sighed.

"I showed the information to the chief," Phyllis continued. "Then the three of you came back and Coiley and Multi explained what they knew, which wasn't much."

"Yeah, when we walked in, you had your hands wrapped around the guy's neck, and you were slamming his head against the floor," Coiley said. "And there was your mom, laying on the floor dead."

"Coiley, I think we could all do _without_ a description of what my mom was doing," Fluey said, looking a little sick.

"Sorry," Coiley said.

"So what happened before Multi and Coiley showed up, anyway?" Phyllis asked. "The chief is going to want to know about it."

"Well, after I called you, we let Sheldon in," Fluey said. "I did the whole superhero bit, and I had the upper hand, and he said he gave up, but the minute my back was turned, he hit me over the head, and he was about to shoot me right between the eyes . . . . ."

"That explains the gun on the floor," Multi said.

"Yeah, but before he could," Fluey went on, "Mom jumped in front of me, and she took the bullet instead. I don't know what happened next. I just sort of snapped when I realized that shot killed her. I mean, I know I said I didn't like her and all, but she _was_ my mom. And this jerk wasn't even showing any remorse! I just lunged and began bashing his head in."

"My guess is he would have shot you if you hadn't attacked," Multi said. "If you ask me, it sounds like he did it out of self defense."

"I agree," Phyllis said. "I'd better go tell the chief."

And with that, Phyllis left the infirmary. She went to Big D's office and told him what Fluey had told her.

"I'd say he acted in self defense," she said.

"I agree," Big D replied. "Justifiable homicide."

Phyllis nodded, and she and Big D went over what to do next.

A few days went by. Fluey was sitting in the Impossi-Mobile, scratching Skittles behind the ears. She normally would have been with Multi, but she knew Fluey needed her more. As they were sitting there, a glow filled the room. Skittles immediately went into "guard dog" mode, and began growling at the light. Fluey just stared at it as well.

"Steady, girl," he said. The light subsided shortly afterward, and standing there in front of the car was Maria Manikatti Sheldon. Skittles let out a yip, and dove for cover.

"Mom?!" Fluey shouted, incredulously. "I thought you were . . . ."

"I am, Tony," Maria said. "I have to make this fast. I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."

"You're apologizing? Just like that? You drop me on somebody's doorstep, show up only sixteen years later, kidnap me, and force me to live with a monster of a stepfather, and you expect me to forgive you?!"

"Tony, please . . . . . I don't expect you to forgive me. I'm a terrible mother. I thought I was ready to be a mother, but I was wrong. I didn't stop Jess from hitting you, because I was more concerned about what he'd do to me. But believe me, Tony, the last thing I wanted was to hurt you. I wouldn't blame you if you never forgive me for anything I've done."

"Well . . . . you may not think you're a good mom, but I think you proved that you were willing to try . . . . when Jess pulled that gun on me."

"And I think you do have _some_ forgiveness in your heart for me. After all, you took me with you when your friends came to the apartment to rescue you. And then what you did to Jess . . . ."

"I know. I know I should have left you there . . . . but you're still my mom. And I didn't say I'd never forgive you. I just can't forgive you just like that, you know. It's gonna take time."

"I know. And I know, eventually, you will forgive me."

"What makes you so sure?"

"Because you're just like your father. You're pure Dawson. The only thing you inherited from the Manikatti branch of the family tree is your hair and eyes. And I'm proud of that."

Maria put her hands on Fluey's shoulders, stroked his hair back for a moment, and planted a kiss on his forehead. Then, she faded away. Fluey looked over at Skittles, who was just starting to come out from hiding. It was the first time she had seen a ghost.

"You can come out now, Skits," he said. "She's gone."

Skittles barked, and made herself comfortable on Fluey's lap. Multi and Coiley came down to the garage shortly afterward. Skittles barked, and jumped into Multi's arms. Since she wasn't moving at super speed, she didn't knock him off his feet this time.

"Everything okay, Fluey?" Coiley asked.

"I think so," he said. "In some weird way, I'm kinda glad my mom showed up."

"You're kidding," Multi said. "After abandoning you, waiting sixteen years to come back, and then kidnapping you?"

"I said in a weird way," Fluey said, shooting Multi a glare. "I mean, now I know who my real parents are . . . . were. I know where I come from, and I don't have to question my identity anymore. I also got to say things I needed to say to her, and I heard some things I needed to hear. I think things are going to start getting back to normal."

Skittles barked, and she, Multi, and Coiley gave Fluey a knowing look.

"Well," Fluey said, shrugging. "Normal for us, anyway!"

THE END


End file.
